Chicago Sun-Times reporter Lynn Sweet notes that the "drip, drip, drip of negative stories" about Tom DeLay "dashes" any hope he had of succeeding Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) as Speaker of the House. The Boston Globereports that Tom DeLay is becoming a liability for GOP members facing tight races.

“I voted against Tom DeLay on changes to the House rules,” Simmons said in a release put out by his office, referring to the proposed rule changes that would have protected DeLay in the event that he is indicted by a Texas district attorney. The statement was released in response to Shays’s comments.

Just in from National Journal's CongressDaily, a report from ousted Ethics Committee Chairman Joel Hefley (R-CO) on the response of GOPers when an "unidentified member" (House Majority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO)) spoke up for Tom DeLay at the weekly Republican Conference meeting:

Political commentators Steve and Cokie Roberts offer up these tidbits on DeLay, his ethical woes, and what should be done about them and DeLay:

"Thanks to his repeated refusal to play by the ethical rules, DeLay has stained the reputation of the institution he leads. And his fellow Republicans have compounded the damage by sabotaging the system for holding members accountable.

The Tri-Cities Herald in Ethics Committee Chair Doc Hasting's district writes up the Washingto state Republican's place in the center of the DeLay battle. We began running ads in Hastings' district on Thursday:

Public Campaign Action Fund is unveiling three TV ads today in a campaign to take Tom DeLay's scandals directly to members of Congress. Tom DeLay is a walking scandal, and Republicans should answer for why they continue to let him be their leader. He should resign immediately.